Hi friends,
Have you had some real food? What about a glass of water? I am writing to you on a beautiful sunny day. My head, heart and spirit all feel heavy.
Constant movement and evolution is what we are asked to engage with, in what direction we don’t yet know with clarity. I feel small and hopeless at times. Then I remembered, we are still going through a global pandemic. We thought life would go back to normal a year ago. And here we stand, creating something new, adapting to what life is presenting. We are still dancing and singing because we want to remember joy, liberty, friendship and freedom. We will not stop doing that.
Joy is a necessity now. I am training myself to deepen my attention and expand my capacity for joy. I need to actively choose joy, however small it is. A hug. A smile. The first sip of iced coffee. A shower. Opening a letter from my friends. Watching the tip of the tree dancing in the wind. I am teaching myself to savor and to hold these experiences in my body for longer. I am excellent at using my imagination to paint the darkest pictures. I need to build up muscles to do the reverse – imagine something better.
When I think about you reading this, I want to give you something that would actually help – go closer to nature. Go on a walk where you get to see trees, or a body of water, mountains, grass, birds, flowers, the clouds… Let all of life support you. Put your bare feet on the earth and take a deep breath. Take another one.
With adequate understanding of what’s possibly ahead, I hope I won’t let fear hijack my life and my actions. I hope I continue to remember dancing and singing. I hope I return to my inner wisdom again and again. I will try my best to lightly dance with life in my stubborn gladness and my reverence for our shared goodness – our deepest desire to stay connected, to feel seen and heard.
One breath at a time- that’s how we do it.
With care,
Xiaoyu
